BLBG:Copper Swings Between Advances, Declines on Europe Data, Yellen
Copper swung between gains and declines in London as investors weighed concerns about waning European recovery against comments by the next head of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
German gross domestic product rose 0.3 percent in the third quarter compared with the second, when it increased by 0.7 percent. The French and Italian economies both shrank 0.1 percent. Germany is the third-largest copper user. Janet Yellen, nominated to be the next Fed chairman, signaled the U.S. economy and labor market must improve before the central bank can begin reducing stimulus. Copper reached a three-month low yesterday.
“The German and French economic figures depressed the market,” Richard Fu, director for Asian commodity trading at Newedge Group SA in London, wrote in a note today. “Yellen’s comment on QE pushed higher copper and other metals’ prices from yesterday’s drop. There might be some bargain hunters after the drop yesterday.”
Copper for delivery in three months was little changed at $6,976 a metric ton by 10:08 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange after rising as much as 0.7 percent and falling as much as 0.2 percent. The metal fell yesterday to $6,956 a ton, the lowest since Aug. 7. Copper for delivery in March was little changed at $3.17 a pound on the Comex in New York. Futures trading volumes were 32 percent higher than the average for the past 100 days for this time of day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Copper stockpiles monitored by the LME fell 0.4 percent to 455,725 tons, exchange data showed today. Canceled warrants, or orders to take metal from LME warehouses, rose 3.4 percent to 282,925 tons. Bookings in Asia jumped 7.7 percent 144,950 tons on orders in Johor, Malaysia, as well as Busan and Gwangyang, South Korea. Copper available for delivery in Asian warehouses is at the lowest in more than four years, LME data showed.
On the LME, tin and nickel rose, while aluminum, zinc and lead fell.
To contact the reporter on this story: Agnieszka Troszkiewicz in London at atroszkiewic@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net
